Executive summary:

Golden Dawn is a neo-Nazi party that has risen from a marginal role in Greek politics to become the third-largest political force in Greece in the wake of the 2008-09 global financial crisis and the subsequent implementation of severe austerity measures. Golden Dawn does not limit its extremism to rhetoric—party members have been involved in hundreds of acts of violence against immigrants and leftists across Greece. After a murder investigation from 2013 implicated at least one Golden Dawn Member of Parliament (MP) and several other members, further investigation into the political party—including through photos, videos, and phone records in the prosecutor’s case file—revealed a group whose members have illegally possessed firearms and explosives, and participated in money laundering, human trafficking, aggravated assault, and protection rings. One ex-member of Golden Dawn has claimed that the party discussed plots to overthrow the Greek government using “tanks.”Yiannis Baboulias, “Greece’s Neo-Nazis Were Scarier Than Anyone Imagined,” Foreign Policy, November 13, 2014, http://foreignpolicy.com/2014/11/13/greeces-neo-nazis-were-scarier-than-anyone-imagined/.

Golden Dawn was founded in the 1980s by neo-Nazi Nikolaos Michaloliakos. The party has long used strongly racist and anti-Semitic rhetoric, and the ancient Greek symbol used by Golden Dawn closely resembles the Nazi swastika. In particular, the party has focused its platform on opposing immigration and immigrants; its campaign slogan during the 2012 Greek general election was “So we can rid this land of filth.”Richard J Evans, “Europe on the verge of a nervous breakdown,” New Statesman, June 27, 2012, http://www.newstatesman.com/world-affairs/world-affairs/2012/06/europe-verge-nervous-breakdown.

For over two decades, the party enjoyed negligible support, securing less than one percent of the vote in local, national, and European elections. However, after the 2008-09 global financial crisis and the Greek government’s subsequent imposition of severe austerity measures that caused widespread unemployment and poverty, Golden Dawn’s electoral success improved dramatically.

As welfare provision and public services were dramatically rolled back in recent years due to the austerity measures, Golden Dawn has worked to fill this gap. The party provides a range of social services—particularly to poverty-stricken working class families—including soup kitchens, medical advice, “Greek-only” blood banks, and donations of food and clothing. The exclusive availability of these services to Greek citizens has led Athens Major George Kaminis to refer to them as “soup kitchens of hatred.”Karolina Tagaris, “Police block far-right 'Greeks only' food handout in Athens,” Reuters, May 2, 2013, http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/05/02/uk-greece-goldendawn-idUKBRE9410PV20130502.

Golden Dawn has long matched political action with violence, with its members taking part in hundreds of violent attacks. Golden Dawn members are also suspected of responsibility for the murders of two immigrants.Mark Lowen, “Greece's Golden Dawn: ‘Don't say a word or I'll burn you alive,’” BBC News, October 2, 2013, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-24363776. But in recent years, Golden Dawn has tried to soften its image, attempting to rebrand itself as a nationalist organization and claiming that prior Golden Dawn references to the Nazi Party were “youthful indiscretions.”Yiannis Baboulias, “Who is Nikolaos Michaloliakos?” London Review of Books, October 3, 2013, accessed September 29, 2014, http://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2013/10/03/yiannis-baboulias/who-is-nikolaos-michaloliakos/. In order to appeal to more middle-class voters, Golden Dawn candidates in the recent European elections included university professors, lawyers, surgeons, businesspeople, and a former NATO commander. However, despite these cosmetic image changes, Golden Dawn’s violent attacks against immigrants and leftists continue.

The murder of anti-fascist rapper Pavlos Fyssas in September 2013 by a Golden Dawn member triggered widespread outrage across Greece and led to a government-led crackdown on the group. As the Greek constitution does not permit banning political parties, the government has attempted to limit the group’s activities and funding through criminal investigations and prosecutions. In February 2015, a judicial panel charged 69 key party leaders—including several MPs—with belonging to a criminal organization, as well as possession of illegal weaponry, extortion, bodily harm, and murder. The trial commenced on April 20, 2015, and was still ongoing as of January 2019. The verdict was initially expected for fall 2016, but is now anticipated for 2020. In the meantime, all detained Golden Dawn members have been released because Greek law allows for a maximum pre-trial detention period of 18 months.Omaira Gill, “Greece’s Golden Dawn trial going nowhere fast,” Deutsche Welle, April 20, 2016, https://www.dw.com/en/greeces-golden-dawn-trial-going-nowhere-fast/a-19197580.

As the criminal investigations have led to a discontinuation of Golden Dawn’s state funding for the party—previously a major source of the party’s income—Golden Dawn has increasingly explored international avenues to widen its reach and to attract funding by opening offices in the United States and Canada where large Greek diaspora communities exist. Golden Dawn also uses the trials to present itself as the victim of state repression.Sofia Tipaldou and Katrin Uba, “Golden Dawn: how the Greek far right wrote the playbook others now use to go mainstream,” The Conversation, August 17, 2018, https://theconversation.com/golden-dawn-how-the-greek-far-right-wrote-the-playbook-others-now-use-to-go-mainstream-100987.

In Golden Dawn’s ideology, the absolute enemy of the nation—indeed, of the entire planet—is considered to be the United States and liberalism. This theory is based on notions of the “cultural superiority” of an “Orthodox Greek nation” threatened by “Western bourgeois culture” and a supposed “Jewish conspiracy.”Dimitris Psarras, Neonazistische Mobilmachung im Zuge der Krise: Der Aufstieg der Nazipartei Goldene Morgenröte in Griechenland (Berlin: Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, 2013), 17. Correspondingly, the real “friends of the nation” are considered to be Russia, Serbia, and other Orthodox Christian countries, the Arabs, who are “oppressed by Zionism,” and every right-wing regime worldwide, as long as it is an enemy of the United States and Israel. But like other right-wing extremist parties, Golden Dawn is also fighting the purported “Islamification” of Greece and Europe.

Special notice should be made of the participation of Golden Dawn members in ethnic cleansing of Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica in 1995. Golden Dawn sent some of its members to join the so-called “Greek Volunteer Guard” to fight on the side of the Bosnian Serbs lead by Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić.Daniel Howden, “Greek role in Srebrenica massacre investigated,” Independent, June 29, 2005, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/greek-role-in-srebrenica-massacre-investigated-295548.html. After the massacres at Srebrenica, this “Guard” triumphantly raised the Greek flag side-by-side with the Chetnik flag.Michas Takis, Unholy Alliance: Greece and Milosevic’s Serbia (College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 2002), 22.

Financing:

Public funding originally constituted an important source of financing for Golden Dawn. For example in 2013, 873,000 euros in Greek state funding had been allocated to the party. However, following a vote in parliament in October 2013, state funding for Golden Dawn was cut off due to the ongoing investigation by state prosecutors as to whether Golden Dawn is a criminal organization.“Greece cuts state funds for far-right Golden Dawn party,” BBC News, October 23, 2013, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-24633611.

Recruitment:

Golden Dawn employs a range of strategies to recruit members, including grassroots mobilization and participating in neighborhood initiatives. It has attracted widespread appeal, boasting thousands of members and attendants at Golden Dawn rallies.Helena Smith, “Greece's Neo Nazi Party Now Has Thousands Of Members Who Believe They Are At War,” Business Insider, June 1, 2013, http://www.businessinsider.com/golden-dawn-has-thousands-of-members-2013-6. Golden Dawn also works to appeal to Greek expatriates, including those living in Australia, Canada, and the United States.Nick Squires, Menelaos Tzafalias, and Harriet Alexander, “What is the Golden Dawn trial about?,” Telegraph (London), April 20, 2015, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/11548387/What-is-the-Golden-Dawn-trial-about.html. The group also recruits online. According to the website, Golden Dawn New York aims “to counter the lies and propaganda against Golden Dawn in the English speaking world by providing official translations of Golden Dawn articles.”“About,” Golden Dawn New York, accessed August 28, 2015, https://xaameriki.wordpress.com/about.

Within the country, Golden Dawn is heavily focused on recruiting from Greek’s youth population. The group has used gyms, athletic clubs, and martial arts clubs as grounds for recruiting youths. It actively recruits at high schools, and even stands accused of launching an indoctrination course called “national awakening,” aimed at children ages 6-10.Helena Smith, “Greece's Neo Nazi Party Now Has Thousands Of Members Who Believe They Are At War,” Business Insider, June 1, 2013, http://www.businessinsider.com/golden-dawn-has-thousands-of-members-2013-6; Gianluca Mezzofiore, “Neo-Nazi Golden Dawn Recruits Children in 'National Awakening' History Course,” International Business Times, February 28, 2013, http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/golden-dawn-greece-children-recruit-indoctrination-440502. These sessions have included lessons on neutral subjects like ancient Greek history and the Christian faith. However, according to Greece’s education ministry, the course was a blatant form of manipulation, aimed to instill a sense of Greek supremacy. The competing Greek party Syriza accused Golden Dawn of “brainwashing little tots with Nazi propaganda.”Gianluca Mezzofiore, “Neo-Nazi Golden Dawn Recruits Children in 'National Awakening' History Course,” International Business Times, February 28, 2013, http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/golden-dawn-greece-children-recruit-indoctrination-440502. Educators and commentators have also noted similarities to the Nazi method of indoctrination.

In 2011, Golden Dawn opened an office in Heraklion, the capitol of Crete. For years, party members approached young people “in cafes and the gym, presenting themselves as family and protectors. They took them for coffee and gave them lessons on Greek history.” Following the 2013 murder of Pavlos Fyssas, local teachers made an effort to teach history in a less nationalistic manner as well as discuss and confront fascist ideology in the classroom. More than 50 schools also organized an anti-fascist festival. In April 2018, militant activists destroyed Golden Dawn’s office in Heraklion, causing them to leave the island.Jessica Bateman, “’Their ideas had no place here’: how Crete kicked out Golden Dawn,” Guardian, December 3, 2018, https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/dec/03/their-ideas-had-no-place-here-how-crete-kicked-out-golden-dawn.

Golden Dawn has a youth club, Galazia Stratia (Blue Army). The group has used bribes to recruit younger members. It hands out cellphones to students, claiming that the kids need access to phones in order to protect themselves from neighborhood crime. They even aim to appeal to Greek youth through music. As of 2013, two of Golden Dawn’s members of parliament were musicians, and had used music to propagate violent and hateful messages. One MP was the bass player in a band that praised Hitler’s Auschwitz death camp in one song, and had another song called “Speak Greek Or Die.” Lefteris Bidelas and Maria Psara, “Stuff Greek Fascists Like,” VICE, March 22, 2014, http://www.vice.com/read/golden-dawn-political-immunity-lift-greece. Members of the Galazia Stratia have also been regular participants and instigators of soccer hooliganism. Analysts believe that strong emotional ties to a soccer team help create a sense of identity and belonging that is particularly appealing to disaffected youth. In November 2017, hooligans of the Thessaloniki PAOK soccer club insulted and attacked local Pakistani Muslims who publicly celebrated the birth of the Prophet Mohammed.Al Neal, “Greek soccer faces FIFA expulsion after recent wave of violence,” People’s World, March 15, 2018, https://www.peoplesworld.org/article/greek-soccer-faces-fifa-expulsion-after-recent-wave-of-violence/; “Greek football hooligans attack Pakistanis celebrating Prophet Mohammed’s birthday in Athens (VIDEO),” RT News, November 27, 2017, https://www.rt.com/news/411018-athens-violence-hooligans-pakistani/.

In public platforms, Golden Dawn propagates an extremist Greek supremacy ideology at the exclusion of the country’s immigrants, homosexuals, and religious and ethnic minorities. The group appears to have capitalized on the immigration crisis to curry favor with the population. One Golden Dawn MP has said, “There are no legal migrants in Greece, not even one.”Paul Mason, “Alarm at Greek police ‘collusion’ with far-right Golden Dawn,” BBC News, October 17, 2012, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-19976841. The party’s 2012 election slogan was similarly xenophobic and ominous: “So we can rid this land of filth.”Jessica Elgot, “European Elections: 9 Scariest Far-Right Parties Now In The European Parliament,” Huffington Post, May 26, 2014, http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/05/26/far-right-europe-election_n_5391873.html. Golden Dawn has also benefitted from the country’s financial crisis. In line with its nationalist, supremacist ideology, the party has refused to accept any austerity measures from Greece’s creditors, endearing the group to the mainstream Greek population.Luke Hurst, “End Austerity to Beat Greek Fascism, Says Syriza,” Newsweek, February 25, 2015, http://europe.newsweek.com/greece-racism-309242.

These are not lone incidents. Throughout the early 2010s, Golden Dawn members were recorded carrying out the majority of documented racist crimes in Greece.“Profile: Greece's far-right Golden Dawn party,” BBC News, October 1, 2013, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-24346993. Attacks committed by Golden Dawn members have ranged from stabbings, aggregated assaults, and murders. They were carried out both by individual members of Golden Dawn acting alone as well as those acting in a group.

June 7, 2012: On a morning television show, a high-profile member of Golden Dawn, Ilias Kasidiaris, physically assaults female politicians Rena Dourou and Liana Kanell. He throws water in Dourou’s face and slapps Kanell after she protested his assault on Dourou.Helen Smith, “Golden Dawn MP's live TV assault shocks Greece,” Guardian, June 7, 2012, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/jun/07/golden-dawn-tv-assault-greece.

July 7, 2012: A group of Golden Dawn members attack Pakistani immigrants outside their house in Nikaia.“Three Pakistanis attacked by members of Golden Dawn,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/91.

August 23, 2012: Members of Golden Dawn confronts police over the transfer of immigrants awaiting deportation to an army base in Corinth. They threaten to turn off the water supply to the base. Later, two immigrants were stabbed.“Golden Dawn clash with police about the transfer of immigrants awaiting deportation to an army camp in Corinth,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/45.

August 25, 2012: In the courtyard of the Greek parliament, Golden Dawn MP Dimitri Koukoutsi attacks the president of the Pakistani Community Association, Javed Aslam, and Vasiliki Katrivanou, an MP from the left-wing Syriza party.“Golden Dawn physically attacks visiting president of Pakistani Community Association and Syriza MP in parliament courtyard,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/41.

September 7, 2012: Two Golden Dawn MPs and approximately 50 group members attack migrant street vendors at a festival in Rafina. Two Golden Dawn members pretend to be immigration officers and asked to see documents while the group destroys stalls.“Golden Dawn members, led by one MP attacks migrants street vendors in Rafina,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/38.

October 12, 2012: A 21-year-old Egyptian is attacked by four members of Golden Dawn. He is severely beaten with chains and bitten by a dog. The attacks leave him blind.“21 year old blinded by attack by four Golden Dawn members,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/26.

November 15, 2012: Members of Golden Dawn threaten to burn down the house of an immigrant family who was behind in their rent payments. The police only arrive after the group has left, and the group returns the following night to repeat their threats.“Threats to damage house of migrant family,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/167.

January 3, 2013: An Egyptian worker is attacked by three men on motorbikes. Their jackets bear the sign of Golden Dawn.“Egyptian worker attacked by three men on motorcycles,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/11.

February 7, 2013: Members of Golden Dawn gather outside Medicin du Monde clinic in Perama and threaten staff and patients.“Golden Dawn threatens Medicin du Monde clinic in Perama,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/5.

February 14, 2013: A group of Golden Dawn members attack three Pakistani workers.“Three workers from Pakistan were attacked by seven Golded [sic] Dawn (greek neonazi party) members,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/89.

July 21, 2013: Six members of Golden Dawn pose as police officers and enter a house lived in by migrant workers in Tavros to check their papers. When the migrants ask for help from a police car, the Golden Dawn members begin beating the migrants. They steal the migrants’ wallets and work permits.“Golden Dawn attack home of migrants,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/125.

September 15, 2013: Golden Dawn MP Ilias Panagiotaros interrupts a World War II remembrance event in the small town of Meligalas. He grabs the microphone, shouts, and shoves elderly townspeople.Marcus Walker and Marianna Kakaounaki, “Greece struggles to outlaw its Golden Dawn Fascist party,” Wall Street Journal, December 4, 2013, http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303281504579219983801909944.

December 17, 2018: The Holocaust memorial in Thessaloniki is vandalized and besmeared with a swastika painting for the fourth time in 2018. Previous attacks have been attributed to far-right supporters, including those from neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn.Toi Staff, “Greek Holocaust memorial vandalized for 4th time this year,” Times of Israel, December 17, 2018, https://www.timesofisrael.com/greek-holocaust-memorial-vandalized-for-4th-time-this-year/.

Associations

Ties to Extremist Entities:

Forza NuovaGolden Dawn has attended various festivals with the Italian far-right extremist party Forza Nuova.Anthee Carassava, “Far-Right Festival in Greece Will Proceed as Planned, Party Says,” New York Times, August 10, 2005, http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/10/international/europe/10greece.html. The two groups have marched together both in Greece and in Italy. Golden Dawn MP Artemis Mattheopoulos serves as Deputy Chairman of the Alliance for Peace and Freedom, an organization run by Forza Nuova leader Roberto Fiore.“Together for a Europe of Free Nations – The Alliance for Peace and Freedom moves forward in Brussels,” Alliance for Peace and Freedom, February 21, 2015, https://alliancepeacefreedom.wordpress.com/.

Casa PoundKaterina Nikolaus, “Greece's Golden Dawn opens Italian branch,” Digital Journal, November 13, 2012, http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/336773.In November 2013, Casa Pound allegedly held a meeting in Rome, which two senior members of Golden Dawn attended, one of which was Apostolos Gkletsos, a former MP and member of Golden Dawn’s Central Committee. The outcome of the meeting allegedly signaled the emergence of a potential alliance between Casa Pound and Golden Dawn.Alfio Bernabel, “Golden Dawn links with Italian fascists,” Searchlight, January 28, 2014, http://www.searchlightmagazine.com/archive/golden-dawn-links-with-italian-fascists.

According to a website linked to Golden Dawn, the leader of the organization, Nikolaos Michaloliakos, received a letter from Alexander Dugin, a professor at Moscow State University and former Kremlin adviser. In the letter, Dugin, who is also one of the architects behind Putin’s “Eurasian” ideology, called for an open exchange between Golden Dawn and his Moscow-based think tank and positively noted Golden Dawn’s geopolitical views. Michaloliakos has allegedly expressed support in the past for closer ties with Russia.Mitchell A. Orenstein, “Putin's Western Allies,” Foreign Affairs, March 25, 2014, http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/141067/mitchell-a-orenstein/putins-western-allies.

Media Coverage

Rhetoric

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"Greek society is ready - even though no-one likes this - to have a fight: a new type of civil war. (…) On the one side there will be nationalists like us, and Greeks who want our country to be as it used to be, and on the other side illegal immigrants, anarchists and all those who have destroyed Athens several times."Paul Mason, “Alarm at Greek police 'collusion' with far-right Golden Dawn”, BBC News, October 17, 2012, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-19976841.

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Golden Dawn is a neo-Nazi party that came third in Greece’s January 2015 elections. Many of Golden Dawn’s government leaders are currently on trial in Athens on charges of establishing a criminal organization.

Executive summary:

Golden Dawn is a neo-Nazi party that has risen from a marginal role in Greek politics to become the third-largest political force in Greece in the wake of the 2008-09 global financial crisis and the subsequent implementation of severe austerity measures. Golden Dawn does not limit its extremism to rhetoric—party members have been involved in hundreds of acts of violence against immigrants and leftists across Greece. After a murder investigation from 2013 implicated at least one Golden Dawn Member of Parliament (MP) and several other members, further investigation into the political party—including through photos, videos, and phone records in the prosecutor’s case file—revealed a group whose members have illegally possessed firearms and explosives, and participated in money laundering, human trafficking, aggravated assault, and protection rings. One ex-member of Golden Dawn has claimed that the party discussed plots to overthrow the Greek government using “tanks.”Yiannis Baboulias, “Greece’s Neo-Nazis Were Scarier Than Anyone Imagined,” Foreign Policy, November 13, 2014, http://foreignpolicy.com/2014/11/13/greeces-neo-nazis-were-scarier-than-anyone-imagined/.

Golden Dawn was founded in the 1980s by neo-Nazi Nikolaos Michaloliakos. The party has long used strongly racist and anti-Semitic rhetoric, and the ancient Greek symbol used by Golden Dawn closely resembles the Nazi swastika. In particular, the party has focused its platform on opposing immigration and immigrants; its campaign slogan during the 2012 Greek general election was “So we can rid this land of filth.”Richard J Evans, “Europe on the verge of a nervous breakdown,” New Statesman, June 27, 2012, http://www.newstatesman.com/world-affairs/world-affairs/2012/06/europe-verge-nervous-breakdown.

For over two decades, the party enjoyed negligible support, securing less than one percent of the vote in local, national, and European elections. However, after the 2008-09 global financial crisis and the Greek government’s subsequent imposition of severe austerity measures that caused widespread unemployment and poverty, Golden Dawn’s electoral success improved dramatically.

As welfare provision and public services were dramatically rolled back in recent years due to the austerity measures, Golden Dawn has worked to fill this gap. The party provides a range of social services—particularly to poverty-stricken working class families—including soup kitchens, medical advice, “Greek-only” blood banks, and donations of food and clothing. The exclusive availability of these services to Greek citizens has led Athens Major George Kaminis to refer to them as “soup kitchens of hatred.”Karolina Tagaris, “Police block far-right 'Greeks only' food handout in Athens,” Reuters, May 2, 2013, http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/05/02/uk-greece-goldendawn-idUKBRE9410PV20130502.

Golden Dawn has long matched political action with violence, with its members taking part in hundreds of violent attacks. Golden Dawn members are also suspected of responsibility for the murders of two immigrants.Mark Lowen, “Greece's Golden Dawn: ‘Don't say a word or I'll burn you alive,’” BBC News, October 2, 2013, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-24363776. But in recent years, Golden Dawn has tried to soften its image, attempting to rebrand itself as a nationalist organization and claiming that prior Golden Dawn references to the Nazi Party were “youthful indiscretions.”Yiannis Baboulias, “Who is Nikolaos Michaloliakos?” London Review of Books, October 3, 2013, accessed September 29, 2014, http://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2013/10/03/yiannis-baboulias/who-is-nikolaos-michaloliakos/. In order to appeal to more middle-class voters, Golden Dawn candidates in the recent European elections included university professors, lawyers, surgeons, businesspeople, and a former NATO commander. However, despite these cosmetic image changes, Golden Dawn’s violent attacks against immigrants and leftists continue.

The murder of anti-fascist rapper Pavlos Fyssas in September 2013 by a Golden Dawn member triggered widespread outrage across Greece and led to a government-led crackdown on the group. As the Greek constitution does not permit banning political parties, the government has attempted to limit the group’s activities and funding through criminal investigations and prosecutions. In February 2015, a judicial panel charged 69 key party leaders—including several MPs—with belonging to a criminal organization, as well as possession of illegal weaponry, extortion, bodily harm, and murder. The trial commenced on April 20, 2015, and was still ongoing as of January 2019. The verdict was initially expected for fall 2016, but is now anticipated for 2020. In the meantime, all detained Golden Dawn members have been released because Greek law allows for a maximum pre-trial detention period of 18 months.Omaira Gill, “Greece’s Golden Dawn trial going nowhere fast,” Deutsche Welle, April 20, 2016, https://www.dw.com/en/greeces-golden-dawn-trial-going-nowhere-fast/a-19197580.

As the criminal investigations have led to a discontinuation of Golden Dawn’s state funding for the party—previously a major source of the party’s income—Golden Dawn has increasingly explored international avenues to widen its reach and to attract funding by opening offices in the United States and Canada where large Greek diaspora communities exist. Golden Dawn also uses the trials to present itself as the victim of state repression.Sofia Tipaldou and Katrin Uba, “Golden Dawn: how the Greek far right wrote the playbook others now use to go mainstream,” The Conversation, August 17, 2018, https://theconversation.com/golden-dawn-how-the-greek-far-right-wrote-the-playbook-others-now-use-to-go-mainstream-100987.

In Golden Dawn’s ideology, the absolute enemy of the nation—indeed, of the entire planet—is considered to be the United States and liberalism. This theory is based on notions of the “cultural superiority” of an “Orthodox Greek nation” threatened by “Western bourgeois culture” and a supposed “Jewish conspiracy.”Dimitris Psarras, Neonazistische Mobilmachung im Zuge der Krise: Der Aufstieg der Nazipartei Goldene Morgenröte in Griechenland (Berlin: Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, 2013), 17. Correspondingly, the real “friends of the nation” are considered to be Russia, Serbia, and other Orthodox Christian countries, the Arabs, who are “oppressed by Zionism,” and every right-wing regime worldwide, as long as it is an enemy of the United States and Israel. But like other right-wing extremist parties, Golden Dawn is also fighting the purported “Islamification” of Greece and Europe.

Special notice should be made of the participation of Golden Dawn members in ethnic cleansing of Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica in 1995. Golden Dawn sent some of its members to join the so-called “Greek Volunteer Guard” to fight on the side of the Bosnian Serbs lead by Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić.Daniel Howden, “Greek role in Srebrenica massacre investigated,” Independent, June 29, 2005, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/greek-role-in-srebrenica-massacre-investigated-295548.html. After the massacres at Srebrenica, this “Guard” triumphantly raised the Greek flag side-by-side with the Chetnik flag.Michas Takis, Unholy Alliance: Greece and Milosevic’s Serbia (College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 2002), 22.

Financing:

Public funding originally constituted an important source of financing for Golden Dawn. For example in 2013, 873,000 euros in Greek state funding had been allocated to the party. However, following a vote in parliament in October 2013, state funding for Golden Dawn was cut off due to the ongoing investigation by state prosecutors as to whether Golden Dawn is a criminal organization.“Greece cuts state funds for far-right Golden Dawn party,” BBC News, October 23, 2013, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-24633611.

Recruitment:

Golden Dawn employs a range of strategies to recruit members, including grassroots mobilization and participating in neighborhood initiatives. It has attracted widespread appeal, boasting thousands of members and attendants at Golden Dawn rallies.Helena Smith, “Greece's Neo Nazi Party Now Has Thousands Of Members Who Believe They Are At War,” Business Insider, June 1, 2013, http://www.businessinsider.com/golden-dawn-has-thousands-of-members-2013-6. Golden Dawn also works to appeal to Greek expatriates, including those living in Australia, Canada, and the United States.Nick Squires, Menelaos Tzafalias, and Harriet Alexander, “What is the Golden Dawn trial about?,” Telegraph (London), April 20, 2015, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/11548387/What-is-the-Golden-Dawn-trial-about.html. The group also recruits online. According to the website, Golden Dawn New York aims “to counter the lies and propaganda against Golden Dawn in the English speaking world by providing official translations of Golden Dawn articles.”“About,” Golden Dawn New York, accessed August 28, 2015, https://xaameriki.wordpress.com/about.

Within the country, Golden Dawn is heavily focused on recruiting from Greek’s youth population. The group has used gyms, athletic clubs, and martial arts clubs as grounds for recruiting youths. It actively recruits at high schools, and even stands accused of launching an indoctrination course called “national awakening,” aimed at children ages 6-10.Helena Smith, “Greece's Neo Nazi Party Now Has Thousands Of Members Who Believe They Are At War,” Business Insider, June 1, 2013, http://www.businessinsider.com/golden-dawn-has-thousands-of-members-2013-6; Gianluca Mezzofiore, “Neo-Nazi Golden Dawn Recruits Children in 'National Awakening' History Course,” International Business Times, February 28, 2013, http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/golden-dawn-greece-children-recruit-indoctrination-440502. These sessions have included lessons on neutral subjects like ancient Greek history and the Christian faith. However, according to Greece’s education ministry, the course was a blatant form of manipulation, aimed to instill a sense of Greek supremacy. The competing Greek party Syriza accused Golden Dawn of “brainwashing little tots with Nazi propaganda.”Gianluca Mezzofiore, “Neo-Nazi Golden Dawn Recruits Children in 'National Awakening' History Course,” International Business Times, February 28, 2013, http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/golden-dawn-greece-children-recruit-indoctrination-440502. Educators and commentators have also noted similarities to the Nazi method of indoctrination.

In 2011, Golden Dawn opened an office in Heraklion, the capitol of Crete. For years, party members approached young people “in cafes and the gym, presenting themselves as family and protectors. They took them for coffee and gave them lessons on Greek history.” Following the 2013 murder of Pavlos Fyssas, local teachers made an effort to teach history in a less nationalistic manner as well as discuss and confront fascist ideology in the classroom. More than 50 schools also organized an anti-fascist festival. In April 2018, militant activists destroyed Golden Dawn’s office in Heraklion, causing them to leave the island.Jessica Bateman, “’Their ideas had no place here’: how Crete kicked out Golden Dawn,” Guardian, December 3, 2018, https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/dec/03/their-ideas-had-no-place-here-how-crete-kicked-out-golden-dawn.

Golden Dawn has a youth club, Galazia Stratia (Blue Army). The group has used bribes to recruit younger members. It hands out cellphones to students, claiming that the kids need access to phones in order to protect themselves from neighborhood crime. They even aim to appeal to Greek youth through music. As of 2013, two of Golden Dawn’s members of parliament were musicians, and had used music to propagate violent and hateful messages. One MP was the bass player in a band that praised Hitler’s Auschwitz death camp in one song, and had another song called “Speak Greek Or Die.” Lefteris Bidelas and Maria Psara, “Stuff Greek Fascists Like,” VICE, March 22, 2014, http://www.vice.com/read/golden-dawn-political-immunity-lift-greece. Members of the Galazia Stratia have also been regular participants and instigators of soccer hooliganism. Analysts believe that strong emotional ties to a soccer team help create a sense of identity and belonging that is particularly appealing to disaffected youth. In November 2017, hooligans of the Thessaloniki PAOK soccer club insulted and attacked local Pakistani Muslims who publicly celebrated the birth of the Prophet Mohammed.Al Neal, “Greek soccer faces FIFA expulsion after recent wave of violence,” People’s World, March 15, 2018, https://www.peoplesworld.org/article/greek-soccer-faces-fifa-expulsion-after-recent-wave-of-violence/; “Greek football hooligans attack Pakistanis celebrating Prophet Mohammed’s birthday in Athens (VIDEO),” RT News, November 27, 2017, https://www.rt.com/news/411018-athens-violence-hooligans-pakistani/.

In public platforms, Golden Dawn propagates an extremist Greek supremacy ideology at the exclusion of the country’s immigrants, homosexuals, and religious and ethnic minorities. The group appears to have capitalized on the immigration crisis to curry favor with the population. One Golden Dawn MP has said, “There are no legal migrants in Greece, not even one.”Paul Mason, “Alarm at Greek police ‘collusion’ with far-right Golden Dawn,” BBC News, October 17, 2012, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-19976841. The party’s 2012 election slogan was similarly xenophobic and ominous: “So we can rid this land of filth.”Jessica Elgot, “European Elections: 9 Scariest Far-Right Parties Now In The European Parliament,” Huffington Post, May 26, 2014, http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/05/26/far-right-europe-election_n_5391873.html. Golden Dawn has also benefitted from the country’s financial crisis. In line with its nationalist, supremacist ideology, the party has refused to accept any austerity measures from Greece’s creditors, endearing the group to the mainstream Greek population.Luke Hurst, “End Austerity to Beat Greek Fascism, Says Syriza,” Newsweek, February 25, 2015, http://europe.newsweek.com/greece-racism-309242.

These are not lone incidents. Throughout the early 2010s, Golden Dawn members were recorded carrying out the majority of documented racist crimes in Greece.“Profile: Greece's far-right Golden Dawn party,” BBC News, October 1, 2013, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-24346993. Attacks committed by Golden Dawn members have ranged from stabbings, aggregated assaults, and murders. They were carried out both by individual members of Golden Dawn acting alone as well as those acting in a group.

June 7, 2012: On a morning television show, a high-profile member of Golden Dawn, Ilias Kasidiaris, physically assaults female politicians Rena Dourou and Liana Kanell. He throws water in Dourou’s face and slapps Kanell after she protested his assault on Dourou.Helen Smith, “Golden Dawn MP's live TV assault shocks Greece,” Guardian, June 7, 2012, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/jun/07/golden-dawn-tv-assault-greece.

July 7, 2012: A group of Golden Dawn members attack Pakistani immigrants outside their house in Nikaia.“Three Pakistanis attacked by members of Golden Dawn,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/91.

August 23, 2012: Members of Golden Dawn confronts police over the transfer of immigrants awaiting deportation to an army base in Corinth. They threaten to turn off the water supply to the base. Later, two immigrants were stabbed.“Golden Dawn clash with police about the transfer of immigrants awaiting deportation to an army camp in Corinth,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/45.

August 25, 2012: In the courtyard of the Greek parliament, Golden Dawn MP Dimitri Koukoutsi attacks the president of the Pakistani Community Association, Javed Aslam, and Vasiliki Katrivanou, an MP from the left-wing Syriza party.“Golden Dawn physically attacks visiting president of Pakistani Community Association and Syriza MP in parliament courtyard,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/41.

September 7, 2012: Two Golden Dawn MPs and approximately 50 group members attack migrant street vendors at a festival in Rafina. Two Golden Dawn members pretend to be immigration officers and asked to see documents while the group destroys stalls.“Golden Dawn members, led by one MP attacks migrants street vendors in Rafina,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/38.

October 12, 2012: A 21-year-old Egyptian is attacked by four members of Golden Dawn. He is severely beaten with chains and bitten by a dog. The attacks leave him blind.“21 year old blinded by attack by four Golden Dawn members,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/26.

November 15, 2012: Members of Golden Dawn threaten to burn down the house of an immigrant family who was behind in their rent payments. The police only arrive after the group has left, and the group returns the following night to repeat their threats.“Threats to damage house of migrant family,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/167.

January 3, 2013: An Egyptian worker is attacked by three men on motorbikes. Their jackets bear the sign of Golden Dawn.“Egyptian worker attacked by three men on motorcycles,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/11.

February 7, 2013: Members of Golden Dawn gather outside Medicin du Monde clinic in Perama and threaten staff and patients.“Golden Dawn threatens Medicin du Monde clinic in Perama,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/5.

February 14, 2013: A group of Golden Dawn members attack three Pakistani workers.“Three workers from Pakistan were attacked by seven Golded [sic] Dawn (greek neonazi party) members,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/89.

July 21, 2013: Six members of Golden Dawn pose as police officers and enter a house lived in by migrant workers in Tavros to check their papers. When the migrants ask for help from a police car, the Golden Dawn members begin beating the migrants. They steal the migrants’ wallets and work permits.“Golden Dawn attack home of migrants,” The city at a time of crisis: Map of attacks on migrants in Athens, accessed October 1, 2014, http://map.crisis-scape.net/reports/view/125.

September 15, 2013: Golden Dawn MP Ilias Panagiotaros interrupts a World War II remembrance event in the small town of Meligalas. He grabs the microphone, shouts, and shoves elderly townspeople.Marcus Walker and Marianna Kakaounaki, “Greece struggles to outlaw its Golden Dawn Fascist party,” Wall Street Journal, December 4, 2013, http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303281504579219983801909944.

December 17, 2018: The Holocaust memorial in Thessaloniki is vandalized and besmeared with a swastika painting for the fourth time in 2018. Previous attacks have been attributed to far-right supporters, including those from neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn.Toi Staff, “Greek Holocaust memorial vandalized for 4th time this year,” Times of Israel, December 17, 2018, https://www.timesofisrael.com/greek-holocaust-memorial-vandalized-for-4th-time-this-year/.

Associations

Ties to Extremist Entities:

Forza NuovaGolden Dawn has attended various festivals with the Italian far-right extremist party Forza Nuova.Anthee Carassava, “Far-Right Festival in Greece Will Proceed as Planned, Party Says,” New York Times, August 10, 2005, http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/10/international/europe/10greece.html. The two groups have marched together both in Greece and in Italy. Golden Dawn MP Artemis Mattheopoulos serves as Deputy Chairman of the Alliance for Peace and Freedom, an organization run by Forza Nuova leader Roberto Fiore.“Together for a Europe of Free Nations – The Alliance for Peace and Freedom moves forward in Brussels,” Alliance for Peace and Freedom, February 21, 2015, https://alliancepeacefreedom.wordpress.com/.

Casa PoundKaterina Nikolaus, “Greece's Golden Dawn opens Italian branch,” Digital Journal, November 13, 2012, http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/336773.In November 2013, Casa Pound allegedly held a meeting in Rome, which two senior members of Golden Dawn attended, one of which was Apostolos Gkletsos, a former MP and member of Golden Dawn’s Central Committee. The outcome of the meeting allegedly signaled the emergence of a potential alliance between Casa Pound and Golden Dawn.Alfio Bernabel, “Golden Dawn links with Italian fascists,” Searchlight, January 28, 2014, http://www.searchlightmagazine.com/archive/golden-dawn-links-with-italian-fascists.

According to a website linked to Golden Dawn, the leader of the organization, Nikolaos Michaloliakos, received a letter from Alexander Dugin, a professor at Moscow State University and former Kremlin adviser. In the letter, Dugin, who is also one of the architects behind Putin’s “Eurasian” ideology, called for an open exchange between Golden Dawn and his Moscow-based think tank and positively noted Golden Dawn’s geopolitical views. Michaloliakos has allegedly expressed support in the past for closer ties with Russia.Mitchell A. Orenstein, “Putin's Western Allies,” Foreign Affairs, March 25, 2014, http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/141067/mitchell-a-orenstein/putins-western-allies.